William Donald Benkelman b. 23 Oct 1928 Royal Oak, Oakland County, Michigan d. 6 Aug 2002 Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan: Strong McLemore Ancestry

1928 - 2002 (73 years)

Name	William Donald Benkelman [1, 2, 3]
Birth	23 Oct 1928	Royal Oak, Oakland County, Michigan [2, 3]
Gender	Male
Death	6 Aug 2002	Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan [3]
Burial	Elkland Township Cemetery, Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan
Notes	Cass City Chronicle June 17, 1938 Page 4 On Friday afternoon, Billie BENKELMAN, Tommy JACKSON, and Joanne BIGELOW, all about nine years of age, thought it would be great fun to follow the Ford Caravan and ride their bikes from Cass City to Caro. Tommy and Joanne were picked up at Ellington and taken into Caro by auto, (not because they were tired, Tommy and Joanne say). Billie paddled on to Caro, but did not refuse a ride back to Cass City later in the day. The STRIFFLER-BENKELMAN BROADCAST, Volume 15, September 1, 1952, noted that William D. Benkelman was graduated from Michigan State College on June 10. It further reported that he his commission June 8 as second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He was to report to Fort Sill, Oklahoma in August. Volume 16 of the same periodical noted he was stationed in Japan. The 1962 issue reported he had moved with his family to Chicago, Illinois, where he was Vice President and General Sales Manager of Cadillac Plastics. Cass City Chronicle Thursday, December 24, 1964 B. Benkelman Promoted by Plastics Company William D. Benkelman has been named Vice-president (Sales) of Cadillac Plastic and Chemical Company. He had been distributor sales manager since 1958. Benkelman will coordinate the company's activities in the areas of overseas sales and development of the O.E.M. (original equipment manufacturer) market. He joined Cadillas Plastic in 1956 as director of factory-sales liasion at its Detroit headquarters. In 1957, he established the company's Cincinnati branch, then in 1962, was promoted to the Illinois branch, headquartered in Chicago. Benkelman is a graduate of Michigan State University and attended the University of Utah Law Schoo. He is the author of numerous articles and papers on plastics. He and his wife, Barbara, and their three children live at 6309 Church Street. Obituary from THE SAGINAW NEWS William D. Benkelman traveled around the world as a businessman, but he always said that his families centennial farm in this thumb community was his favorite place on earth. Benkelman, a retired plastics executive and onetime Bloomfield Hills resident died from Parkinson's disease at his Cass City home. He was 73. He was born in Royal Oak and graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelors degree in 1952. Benkelman was a captain in the U.S. Army and a veteran of the Korean War, where as a lieutenant he received a bronze star for meritorius service. His career in the plastics business began in 1958 when he joined the Cadillac Plastic and Chemical Company in Troy as a salesman assigned to generate new business for the startup company. Former colleagues describe him as a determined visionary who saw the enginering and manufacturing potential for plastics even while others argued it was nothing more than a cheap substitute for metal and glass. Benkelman became chairman of the company in 1984. When he retired in 1988, Cadillac was the worlds number one distributor of semi-finished plastic shapes. General Electric company owns it now. After retirement, Benkelman and his wife Barbara moved to Cass City to live on the farm that had remained in the family for 100 years. He renovated the old farmhouse into a comfortable home. Barbara Benkelman died in 1995. The funeral will begin at 2 pm Sunday in the Presbyterian church on Church Street in Cass City with burial at the Elkland Township Cemetery. (Courtesy of Alvin Benkelman) (Medical):Parkinson's Diease
Person ID	I838	Strong Family Tree
Last Modified	17 Aug 2014

Father	Harold "Sime" Leroy Benkelman, b. 27 Nov 1897, St. Francis, Cheyenne County, Kansas d. 8 Apr 1981, Pontiac, Oakland County, Michigan (Age 83 years)
Mother	Isabel Lizzie Fletcher, b. 25 Oct 1895, Bad Axe, Huron County, Michigan d. 3 Nov 1993, Caro, Tuscola County, Michigan (Age 98 years)
Marriage	14 Sep 1918	Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan [2, 4]
	Cass City Chronicle Vol. 14, No. 22. Friday, September 27, 1918 Fletcher-Benkelman Miss Isabelle Fletcher, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Archie Fletcher of Bad Axe and Harold Benkelman, elder son of Mr. and Mrs. B. F. Benkelman, were united in marriage Saturday evening, Sept. 14, by Rev. Henderson, formerly a pastor of the bride. The ceremony took place at the Presbyterian manse on Grand River avenue in Detroit. Following the ceremony the bridal couple were entertained at dinner at the Hotel Statier by Mr. and Mrs. Russell Newbold, of Philadelphia, cousins of the bride. Mr. and Mrs. Benkelman arrived in Cass City on Tuesday after visiting with relatives and friends in Detroit and other cities. \\ (Transcribed by Melinda McLemore, Strong, Summer 2007)
Family ID	F33	Group Sheet \| Family Chart

Family Barbara Ell, b. 17 May 1932, Mineola, Nassau County, New York d. 1 Feb 1995, Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan (Age 62 years)

Marriage 2 May 1952 East Lansing, Ingham County, Michigan [5, 6]

Children

	1. Living
	2. Living
	3. Living

Family ID F612 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Last Modified 24 Mar 2010

Event Map

	Birth - 23 Oct 1928 - Royal Oak, Oakland County, Michigan
	Marriage - 2 May 1952 - East Lansing, Ingham County, Michigan
	Death - 6 Aug 2002 - Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan
	Burial - - Elkland Township Cemetery, Cass City, Tuscola County, Michigan

= Link to Google Earth

Pin Legend : Address : Location : City/Town : County/Shire : State/Province : Country : Not Set

Photos » Slide Show		Benkelman, Unknown Thought by Nancy Schwaderer, a childhood friend, to be a photo of young Bill Benkelman.Lorraine Smith Benkelman, the wife of Bill's brother, does not agree. She suggested it might instead be Alvin Benkelman. However, neither Alvin Benkelman nor his sister Ann Scott Pritchard, recognize him. PLEASE HELP US POSTIVELY IDENTIFY THIS PHOTO.
		Benkelman, Lois ca 1930's with her young cousins Bonnie and Barbara Benkelman of Colorado, and her sister-in-law, Isabel Benkelman and nephew Bill Bonnie-Margaret on the left, Lois standing behind Mary Barbara, and Isabel (Fletcher) Benkelman touseling Bill's hair.
		Benkelman, Minnie ca 1935, with her grandchildren Minnie Jesse Benkelman with her grandchildren. She is holding the youngest, Bonnie, and Bill is to her left, Bob and Dorothy to her right, with all the grandchildren making funny faces.
		At least one living or private individual is linked to this item - Details withheld.
		At least one living or private individual is linked to this item - Details withheld.

Headstones

Benkelman, William Donald

Sources

[S469] Williams, Dorothy Ball--Family Researcher (dotwfl@comcast.net) 3331 Southwest Villa Place, Palm City, FL 34990 ; based in part on BonnieMargaret Benkelman Jacob's unpublished typescript, THE FAMILY BENKELMAN.
[S492] Peck, Edward Arthur THE TEN BENKELMANS WHO EMIGRATED TO AMERICA Ca. 1850s AND CERTAIN OF THEIR DESCENDANTS, 1982.
[S333] Ancestry.com - U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-Current [database online], (Ancestry.com. Social Security Death Index [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2011. Original data: Social Security Administration. Social Security Death Index, Master File. Social Security Administration. The Social Security Administration Death Master File contains information on millions of deceased individuals with United States social security numbers whose deaths were reported to the Social Security Administration. Birth years for the individuals listed range from 1875 to last year. Information in these records includes name, birth date, death date, and last known residence.).
[S653] Cass City Chronicle, P.O. Box 115, Cass City, Michigan 48726, Published continously since 1899, archived from 1899 through 2005 at http://newspapers.rawson.lib.mi.us/chronicle/, Friday, September 27, 1918 (Reliability: 3).
[S595] Striffler-Benkelman Broadcast, (Family Publication, published sporadically to record family milestones in connection with the annual Striffler-Benkelman Family Reunions, with Vol. 1, Number 1, published Sept. 7, 1936. Issues on file at the Rawson Memorial Library in Cass City, Michigan include Vol. 5 (1941), Vol. 7 (1944) and Volumes 8 (1945) through Vol. 28 (1968). Issues published from 1961 through 1964 were not assigned volume numbers, and 1963 appears to be missing. Xeroxes of the existing issues were also made by Melinda McLemore Strong in 2007. According to a article published by the Cass City Chronicle on August 6, 1981, commemorating the Fiftieth and Final Striffler-Benkelman Reunion, the final issue of the STRIFFLER-BENKELMAN BROADCAST appears to have been Volume 28, published in 1968.), Volume 15, September 1, 1952. (Reliability: 3).
[S653] Cass City Chronicle, P.O. Box 115, Cass City, Michigan 48726, Published continously since 1899, archived from 1899 through 2005 at http://newspapers.rawson.lib.mi.us/chronicle/, Wednesday, February 8, 1995 (Reliability: 3).